Paper Mario: Bell of Espuroh
Mario in Paper form takes on yet another new adventure, when an eager "adventurer" by the name of "Archy" drags Mario to the Ester Isles with the hopes of discovering the purpose and origins of an ancient structure known as the "Bell of Espuroh"... Story/Chapters Story Intro Ahem... Today I will inform you about the a certain group of islands in a certain ocean known as the Ester Isles. It all starts many millennia ago: Legends say that the islands were completely uninhabited by any life... but when the very first people discovered the islands, they bought along with them plants and animals... life. From this, a mysterious divine being awoke and spoke to the natives: the goddess welcomed these people and told them that they could use the land of her island, just as long as they protected and maintained the nature and tranquillity of the islands. The goddess then went into a deep slumber after telling them that she would reawaken 700 years later. And so, for many centuries, the natives respected the goddess's request, and maintained peace and nature... but over time, the tribes soon forgot about this vow, and began building more structures on the forbidden land, and from this wars broke out over technology and nature... And soon 700 Years had past... the goddess was disgusted at what had become of her island. Enraged, the divinity flooded the island, destroying not only the structures and the people who betrayed her request, but also every last bit of life on the island... The island was once again barren of nature... and the goddess fell once again into a deep, deep slumber... There was however still one single structure standing after this destruction... standing untouched... a tall Tower, with a large golden bell, that somehow was immovable... who could have built such a sturdy device that could resist such devastation??? To this day nobody knows. However, now in modern day, the Ester Islands are once again thriving with nature and civilization, but it's been almost 700 years since the islands were rediscovered... "My word!!! I must delve deeper into this! But surely I can't do this alone! I need help... I need a partner... and I think I know just the man for the job... hehehe!!!!" Prologue: A Reluctant Journey Begins Our story begins in the Mushroom Kingdom, where we join Mario and Luigi in their humble home, not too long after Mario’s previous adventure. Suddenly they hear a knock at the door, and Luigi gets up to answer it “Hello?” Luigi tilts his head in curiosity. “He... hello... You must be L-luigi yes??? Hehe... if it’s alright, I’d like to talk to Mario about something... if that’s alright...”. “Uh, okay... bro, it’s for you”, Luigi calls. Mario gets up, scratching his head as he approaches unusual man in the front doorway. At closer glance, Mario takes a good look at the man dressed in a pale and beige colours, with a box tie and a nifty-looking hat. The man stutters “Uh... hehe... oh my word! IT’S YOU! It’s THE Mario!!!”. Luigi mutters “Why didn’t I get that reaction?...”. “OH Right! Yes, of course! The name’s Archy, and it’s an honour to meet you in person Mr. Mario!”. Mario nods and smiles awkwardly, as the acquaintance continues to ramble on. Mario yawns. “Oh apologies, I’m sure you must me desperately wondering why I’m here; you see I come from an exotic archipelago in the Warm-Warm Ocean, known as the Ester Isles, and my occupation is... ADVENTURE! Or Adventurer, much like yourself in fact!”. “I wouldn’t class his occupation as an “Adventurer” Luigi states “More like world-saver or... plumber”. Archy nods “Yes yes, I did not mean it literally, for my real occupation is actually a famous book author, but my point is, adventure is still a massive part of both our jobs, so here’s the deal, I need a partner for my great upcoming expedition! And when I think adventures, there’s no better choice than you for partner!!! SO PLEASE!!! I ask that you come with me back to the Ester Isles, so that one of the greatest adventures of all time may BEGIN!!! Mario looks downwards, reluctantly gritting his teeth. Luigi speaks for his brother “Y’know, your offer sounds extravagant, but I think Mario might be a little bit tired from his previous adventure... not to be rude, but now might not be the time...”. “Oh...” Archy lowers his head disappointingly “I see... but there’s just one problem...”. “What’s that?” Luigi wonders. “You see... I... I ALREADY BOUGHT YOU THE PLANE TICKETS MARIO!!!”. Mario jumps in shock, “WHAT??!!” Luigi gasps. “Yes... you see, I thought for sure, Mario would actually say yes, but... now I’m in a bit of a pickle...”. Luigi looks at Mario “Y’know bro, maybe you should go, I mean, you might regret it if you don’t, and heck, it actually sounds pretty fun! So why not go?”. Mario turns his head back and forth from Luigi and Archy, as Archy intensely awaits the response. Finally, Mario smiles and nods with optimism. Archy’s face instantly explodes into a screech of joy “YEEEEEEEERRRRRRRRRRSSSSSSS!!!!!!! HAHAHA!!! YES!!!!! THANK YOU SO MUCH MARIO!!!!”. Mario cringes slightly, giving off a fake smile. “So, when’s the adventure begin?” Luigi asks. “As soon as we arrive in the Ester Isles of course!” Archy replies “Oh, and by the way, I forgot to mention; the flight’s TODAY!!!”. Mario and Luigi jump in shock, as Mario quickly runs back into his house to pack his things for the journey ahead. “Yeah, sorry, I guess I was a little too optimistic when coming here, hehe” Archie admits “Better hurry up, the flight’s in less than 2 hours!”. “Seriously? ... What the heck were you thinking when you arranged this?” Luigi sighs... Later on, Mario and Archy finally depart from the airport, as Luigi, Princess Peach, Toadsworth and a few other toads wave goodbye, wishing Mario luck on his new... rather, reluctant adventure... PROLOGUE: A RELUCTANT JOURNEY BEGINS!!! After a long flight of Mario putting up with Archy’s annoying personality, the pair finally arrives in the Ester Isles, in the capital city known as Beanshroom City! “Alright Mario! First we’ll go to my house to unpack everything, then when we’re ready, we can begin!”, Mario rubs his eyes and nods unenthusiastically. So, the unlikely duo make their way to Archy’s house... where Mario is fairly surprised: This “house” turns out to be more of a Luxurious Mansion! “I did tell I was a famous author, and because of that I’m rich as well! You see, adventure is truly a great source of inspiration for writing books! And if we complete this mystery together, our tale will be more than just a... tale? Haha”, Mario lifts an eyebrow wondering what he meant by “mystery”. Mario and Archy enter the beautiful home, where Mario stares in awe at its magnificence. “Archy sir, welcome back!” A voice greets. Mario turns to see a broozer-like butler wearing a bow-tie “Ah, you must be Mario, it is truly a pleasure to meet you in person sir” the Broozer bows. “Ah yes, Mario, this is my butler: Seboostian. Seboostian, if you wouldn’t mind, could you help Mario unpack?”. “Of course sir... (Not like have a choice)” Seboostian bows again “Oh by the way, did you tell Mario about the purpose of your adventure yet?”. Archy suddenly realises “Oh fiddlesticks! I forgot to tell you! Hmm, Seboostian, if it’s alright, I’d like to show Mario in person”. “Yes sir, I’ll unpack everything while you’re gone sir... (because it is my job to EVERYTHING...)” Mario and Archy leave the mansion, and make their way into Beanshroom City itself, which beautifully covered with both modern architecture and natural foliage. Archy then guides Mario to the front-centre of the city, where the impressive landmark of the Ester Isles is located. A sturdy tower with a ancient-vibe, and at the top, a large golden bell... “Mario... this here, is the Bell of Espuroh... a truly mysterious artefact. You see, it was not built by the natives of the island, nor the people who discovered it afterwards... no one knows who built it, or for what purpose. And that is the goal of this adventure: To find out who or what built it, and why. Access inside the tower is forbidden to us, so we can only look at it right, but that’s okay, I think I have some leads on what to do first!”. Archy then notices that Mario appears to be slightly dreary. “Oh dear, is that the jet lag kicking in? Okay, let’s head back to my house, and you can take a rest, I’m sure Seboostian has set up your room by now!”. So, they head back, and Mario takes a rest in his new room (which also happens to be customisable). The next morning... “ALRIGHT MARIO! COME ON!” Archy busts into Mario’s room with a speaker phone to project his voice, causing Mario to abruptly fall out of bed in shock. “NOW THAT YOU’VE HAD YOUR POWER NAP, WE CAN TRULY START OUR ADVENTURE!!! YEEERSSS!!!!”. Mario gets angry, but holds it in. “Eh, sir, don’t you think that’s a little bit unnecessary...” Seboostian asks. “Not at all; adventures are full of surprises, so I’m just helping him get in the mood!” Archy grins at Mario, while Mario simply pulls a straight, unimpressed face. Anyway... once ready, Mario and Archy prepare to leave the house. “Alright Mario, from here on out, we’re partners right?”. Mario nods reluctantly, “So, in that case, we must stick together!” ARCHY JOINED YOUR PARTY!!! FIELD ABIILITY: Can information, ideas or hints about people, places and other stuff (tattle), but is also the wielder of various important items you may find in future. With that, you head into Beanshroom City again (now is good chance to explore a lot more of it), but when you’re ready, Archy will tell you to head to the North border of the city. On the border, there is a large fence in front of a wild jungle. “That’s the Pully Jungle, and I think that’s where our first clue lies... based off of a previous visit there... but I got attacked by some enemies whilst investigating, and I had to flee... but with you here, that won’t be a problem! I’m the brains and you’re the brawn right?! Now usually, you would need a special Ester Pass for authorisation into areas like this, but lucky for you, I already got you an Ester Pass, so it’s fine!” With that, Mario and Archy enter the Pully Jungle, where you finally get introduced to the first battles in the games (Enemies: Grumbapples, Piney Grumbapples, Para-Grumbapples), as well as some other basic mechanics. Eventually, you reach the jungles Northern edge, where you approach a massive rock face with large, imposing and ancient door carved into it. “Aha! YES! We found it!!! This was what I caught a glimpse of last time, this structure!!!” Archy praises as Mario takes in the surroundings. “Hmm, there was rumours about a door-like structure, but not many have ever bothered to come this far into the jungle to see it properly... probably due to the enemies...”. “But this brings up another mystery... the door...” Archy feels the rock surface of the door “This material... it seems oddly similar to that of the Bell of Espuroh...” Mario then looks up at the murals on the door, in which Mario realises something and points it out. “Huh? The Bell you say?” Archy looks up at the murals as well, when he too realises; the centre mural depicts a bell-like object, which undoubtedly, is the Bell of Espuroh. “How very intriguing... there’s a good chance that whoever built the Bell of Espuroh, built this as well... hehehe... I think we’re onto something!” “Impressive deductive skills you have there” a voice speaks from behind. Mario and Archy turn around to see a strange tribal-looking character, with large red eyes and unusual thorny clothing... “Huh? Who are you?” Archy wonders. The shady figure grins “Oh, who I am is irrelevant... For I am a mere native of the island”. “Ah I see! So, you wouldn’t happen to know anything about this giant door here? Maybe how to open it?”. The native replies “As a matter of fact, I do have some useful info for you...”. “Really? Great!” Archy celebrates. “But first... I wanna find out how destructible you are!!!” The native smiles sinisterly “HOW ABOUT A LITTLE FIGHT!!??”. “Wh-what!!??” Archy and Mario gasp. With that, a short fight infuses against this unnamed native. After the battle; “Not bad; you’re not the most destructible being I’ve come across, hehehe”. Mario and Archy give a cautious look, “Okay, we played your little game, now, were you gonna tell us what you know about this door?” Archy reminds him. “Oh yes, I almost forgot” the native smirks “As you can see, the door is sealed shut, but there is a small hole in the centre... so it should go without saying that you’ll need a key or something along those lines in order to open it...”. “Hmmm, good point, but where on earth would we find a key of sorts?” Archy ponders. “Hehe, I’ll leave you indestructibles to it then... good luck on your adventure... hehehe...” The native then creeps off back into the jungle... “Something’s not quite right about that guy...”, Mario nods in agreement. “Hmmm... hey I have an idea... he was a native, and he knew a bit about this door so, something tells me that if we find some other natives, they might even more useful info!”, Mario clutches his chin. Archy then grins “There’s one place on this island that comes to mind when I think of Natives... Mario, just decided where our next destination is: Nirvana Savannah!” With that, Mario and Archy leave the jungle, and end up back in Beanshroom City, where they prepare for the next step of their new adventure. The entrance to Nirvana Savannah is located just east of Beanshroom City, and once ready, Mario and Archy enter the location of Chapter 1! “Haha, this is it! The first step to discovering the mysteries of the Ester Isles!!!”